Chapter 54: Charlotte and the Answer to the Unease

"Ugh, I’m done with this!"

I dove onto my bed.

Then I buried my face into the pillow, rubbing against it. It’s not exactly a high-quality pillow, a little scratchy, but somehow that roughness makes it oddly comfortable.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Alice-chan staring in surprise at my sudden outburst.

"Haaaah…"

A long sigh slipped out. I was exhausted. Completely, utterly exhausted.

"Are you feeling unwell, Onee-san?"

"No, no, I’m fine. Sorry for worrying you… haaaah…"

Alice-chan’s concern warmed me, but even so, I couldn’t hold back the sighs.

In the end, I still hadn’t gone to collect the payment. All that effort for nothing—spent and wasted.

The mess with Salem had probably reached other ears by now too. If she really does have strong connections with the upper circles, it might cause problems for future jobs.

I was starting to regret my choice, just a little.

But really, going along with her had never been an option.

So the conclusion was: I was the idiot who let myself be tempted by easy money and took on a shady job.

Still, it was true—I was broke. That reward money could have solved a bunch of my problems in one go…

"It wouldn’t be right to keep owing the Master… Ugh, there’s gotta be some way around this."

"Is it… about money?"

"Urk."

"I’m sorry. It’s because of me you’re struggling…"

"Whoa! No no no—that’s not it, not at all!"

Right now, I was still covering Alice-chan’s living expenses.

Of course, she was getting wages for her work as a waitress, but I told her to use that for herself.

I’d taken her in with the intention of looking after her properly. Until she could live on her own, I wanted to do my duty as her guardian.

That’s why—it hurt so much to have a child worry about money on my behalf.

Then maybe stop sighing? Yeah, fair point…

"It’s just some trouble at work. Things didn’t go so well, and I got a little down, that’s all."

"You mean with your adventurer work, right?"

"Yeah, exactly."

The reward had been tempting enough that I almost reconsidered even now.

But who would’ve thought the client would turn out to be that crazy woman?

Even Trishel would’ve at least listened to me more reasonably than that.

"Onee-san, the folks at the shop always say you’re amazing, you know?"

"Oh really? Do they?"

"Yes! When you’re around, they hold back. But when it’s just me, they get all happy and talk to me a lot."

Alice-chan said it with a bright smile, almost giggling.

It made me feel embarrassed, and at the same time, grateful. So the regulars were actually being considerate of me, huh?

Of course, it might just be that they were happy to chat with a cute girl and only mentioned me in passing.

Old drunkards loved to ramble, after all.

"I see. And how are things going for you, Alice-chan?"

"Great! Lately, even Master and the Head Chef have been praising me more often!"

"Wow, that’s wonderful."

Aah, Alice-chan really was a source of healing.

I felt like pulling her into bed with me and hugging her like a pillow, just so I could sleep and forget all the bad stuff.

"So, Onee-san… what happened to make you sigh like that? I want to hear your story!"

"Hmm? Me, huh… Well…"

Since she was willing to listen, I let myself lean on her a little.

I didn’t want to show Alice-chan too many of my uncool sides. But just this once, I hoped she’d forgive me. This job had really drained me.

Alice-chan listened patiently, nodding along as I spoke until I finally finished. Then, tilting her head adorably, she asked:

"Um… Onee-san."

"Yes? What is it, Alice-chan?"

"That thing… about a person controlling monsters. Is that… normal?"

"Haha, of course not—"

I stopped mid-sentence.

My mind went cold.

I hadn’t realized it at the time because I wasn’t thinking clearly. Afterward, I was too caught up worrying about money. But why hadn’t I noticed sooner?

Could an ordinary human really stay in such a dark place, surrounded by monsters, without being terrified? I couldn’t. Even when someone was protecting me, I’d been barely able to hold back my fear.

Even someone as strong as Riven would eventually wear down mentally.

And yet she had said she’d wait there. Declared it, even—that she’d be there until we came back, whenever that was.

Could anyone really do that? No. Absolutely not—unless they were certain the monsters would never attack them. Unless they could actually live in a dungeon.

"…The dungeon’s treasure."

The possibility flashed through my mind.

They say it’s the dungeon’s core. They say it’s the dungeon itself. They say whoever possesses it has the dungeon in their hands.

Could it be… that Salem has it?

"This is bad. This is really, really bad."

I leapt up from the bed.

Alice-chan flinched at my sudden movement, but I couldn’t worry about that right now.

Because if this was true, then there’s no way Riven hasn’t realized it too.

So that’s what he meant when he said “there’s no way you can miss it”!

He already knew about us. He had to know that Riven was after the dungeon’s treasure as well!

And if that’s the case, then Riven’s next move is obvious.

"I’m so sorry, Alice-chan! Something urgent just came up!"

"Ah—Onee-san!?"

"Thanks for listening to me!"

I grabbed my ragged traveling cloak and threw it over my shoulders.

Come to think of it, Riven had already seemed to be catching on back inside the dungeon. In that case, it wouldn’t be strange if he had already figured it out by now.

Would he check with me before heading back to the dungeon? No—that couldn’t happen. Salem had said her target was me. That meant he wouldn’t take me with him. He’d go alone.

Because the worst-case scenario would be both of us going, losing, and me being the only one taken away. If that’s the case, Riven would absolutely choose to go by himself.

"Wait, no way. That’s way too dangerous."

The memory of that presence beyond the darkness surfaced again.

It had been just as dreadful—maybe even more so—than the monster sister. Indescribable, something no human should ever try to face.

There’s no way anyone could handle that alone.

People passing by gave me strange looks as I sprinted down the main street, ignoring their stares and heading straight for Riven’s inn.

Please be in time. Please let me make it. The dread in my chest wouldn’t fade, heavy and stagnant. Don’t go alone, please, just let me make it—

I reached the inn and shoved the door open with a bang.

I was about to run up to the second floor when a man at a table on the first floor, drinking, called out to me.

"…Oh? Young lady."

"Hah… hah… You’re… Neil-san, right?"

That shady-looking face was familiar. I’d seen him once before, just prior to the monster sister incident. He should be one of Riven’s subordinates.

"That’s me. You seem to be in quite a rush. Business with the boss?"

He stood from his seat and walked over to me. I was grateful—this wasn’t something I could shout about in front of everyone. Besides, I was so out of breath I couldn’t raise my voice if I tried.

"Riven… Is Riven-san still in his room?"

"Hm? Oh, come to think of it, he just left a little while ago, all geared up. Did you need him? If it’s a message, I can—"

"Thank you!"

"Hey, wait—!"

Damn it. Too late.

I heard him calling out behind me, but I couldn’t stop now.

Every moment I wasted, Riven might already be walking into danger.

Sure, it was possible he’d come back safe on his own. Maybe I was rushing off for nothing. Maybe he hadn’t realized anything and had just gone shopping.

Hell, maybe he was far stronger than I’d thought, strong enough to handle everything on his own.

But what mattered was the worst-case scenario. I couldn’t afford to look away and regret it later.

If it turned out to be nothing… well, then it would just make for a funny story.

"I can’t dive into the dungeon alone. The only person I can rely on is—"

There was really only one option.

How many favors had I racked up these past months? I was starting to worry I’d never be able to repay them.

They say human connections are priceless. It was true—someone like me, who couldn’t do anything alone, had made it this far only because of others.

I ran on, heading for my next destination. My lungs burned.

"That hood—Charlotte-jou, is that you?"

"…hff… Rainer—hff—Is Reynard here?"

I pushed the door open and stumbled toward the person nearby.

Yes—if we were going to face something like that, the only one I could count on was Reynard.

"The Clan Master? If you mean him—"

"If you’re looking for Reynard, he’s out right now, Charlotte-chan."

A voice I knew well. Whether that timing was good or bad, I couldn’t tell. Lately, we really did seem bound by fate.

"…Trishel."

"Mind filling me in? Just until Reynard gets back from his errand."

She said it with a wink. But her smile carried a certain artificial air, a slickness I couldn’t ignore.